The Great Green Way
The Great Green Way lies between Townsville and Cairns in Far North Queensland. Within this area are exceptional natural attractions including the World Heritage listed Wet Tropics Rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef and the extraordinary Paronella Park.
Within the Great Green Way there are over a dozen mainland National Parks and over 25 tropical islands and at Mission Beach, the closest access point to the Great Barrier Reef. Experience the hassle-free North Queensland way of life where you can rub shoulders with locals in the pub and immerse yourself in the myriad of experiences available whether at sea or on land.
Enjoy a vast array of lush exotic and tropical foods from our prime meats to fabulously fresh seafood and exotic tropical fruits and vegetables that can be experienced at roadside local produce stalls, markets, wineries, cafes and restaurants.
The 340km section of highway that is the Great Green Way provides the most memorable scenery in Australia with mountains wrapped in rainforest, splendid waterfalls, magnificent fertile farmlands and breathtaking Coral Sea views.
Within this area you will find:
Ingham
Ingham and the Hinchinbrook Shire, a place of outstanding natural beauty with iconic attractions such as Wallaman Falls; the highest, single-drop waterfall in Australia, Tyto Wetlands, a 90 hectare wetland site and Hinchinbrook Island, Australia’s largest island National Park, home of the Thorsborne Trail and magnificent mangrove everglades. There are golden sandy beaches such as Lucinda, with the longest service jetty (5.76kilometres) in the southern hemisphere, Forrest Beach and Taylors Beach, camping areas, swimming holes, walking tracks and a rich diversity of animal and bird life.There are also rich Indigenous experiences in the region with several aboriginal tribal groups sharing generations of knowledge about every aspect of their country.
Cardwell
The town of Cardwell, the first port settlement in North Queensland, on the Bruce Highway north of Townsville is the gateway to the kind of experiences you will come to expect with spectacular boating and fishing, historical sites, indigenous art and forests and national parks of unique beauty with lookouts, fresh water swimming holes and idyllic places to stop and soak in the peace and tranquillity.
Tully
Further north you will find sugar town, Tully, one of the wettest towns in Australia and home of the Golden Gumboot. Tully Sugar Mill offers daily guided tours in the crushing season (June to November) and there is plenty of work for backpackers on local banana farms with accommodation in Tully. In the area there are popular fresh water swimming holes, a national park, white water rafting on the Tully River, Murray Falls and Indigenous experiences, walks on Mount Tyson and impressive views of World Heritage rainforest.
Popular spots for fishing can be found at Tully Heads and Hull Heads with Googarra Beach and views to many tropical islands.
Tully Visitor and Heritage Centre
Mission Beach
Mission Beach is a natural midway point between Townsville and Cairns. It is an unspoilt tropical paradise of World Heritage rainforest fronting 14 kilometres of golden, sandy beach. The relaxed nature of Mission Beach makes it a great place for all sorts of travellers to visit. Whether you are a family seeking calm, safe waters for your kids to swim in or a backpacker on your way up or down the coast, Mission Beach has something for you.
Innisfail
Innisfail with a population of approximately 10,000 is a multicultural hub with over half of its surroundings within the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area with some of the oldest surviving tropical rainforest in the world. Innisfail is known for Art Deco buildings, picnic areas, rainforest tracks, wetland ponds, lakes, fishing, beaches, creeks and rivers.The iconic Paronella Park & the Canecutter Way with its food, history and country charm, Kurrimine Beach a fishing mecca with horse riding on the beach, Etty Bay with Cassowaries walking on the beach daily and Mourilyan with the Australian Sugar Museum and Harbour with its bulk sugar loading facility.
Places to visit in and around Innisfail
Babinda
Babinda is on the Bruce Highway south of Cairns and edged by Queensland’s two highest mountains; Mt Bartle Frere and Mt Bellenden Kerr, part of the World Heritage listed Wooroonooran National Park. Babinda is known for cool mountain streams, unspoiled rainforests and stunning waterfalls, Babinda Boulders, a popular swimming hole with massive water worn boulder formations. A tidy town with early Queensland architecture, fascinating Aboriginal legendsand access to abundant fishing, natural wetlands, reef trips to the amazing Frankland Island group and free camping areas with facilities.
Gordonvale
Gordonvale is a small sugar town situated in the southern end of Cairns on the Mulgrave River with a population or around 5,000. Famous for the natural landmark Walsh’s Pyramid it is a town with historic buildings, cane farm history, mosaics depicting stories of early traders and aboriginal legend.
Places to visit in and around Gordonvale